Food storage disaster
We just replaced our last broken fridge a month ago, and now this one is out too. At least in the last fridge, the freezer still worked, so I moved everything I could to the freezer, which is basically full of meat. Then when we replaced it, I stocked up on frozen meals (for work lunches) and frozen fruits (for smoothies).
Now I have an unfrozen freezer full of meat, Weight Watchers meals, and frozen fruits and a few veg.
Question: assuming I can find a way to keep these items cold (not frozen), what might be re-freezable? Will my dinner table look like some kind of Viking feast tomorrow? What's the simplest way I can cook cuts of meat, if I have to cook and then chill and re-freeze?
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6 Comments:
I would say every thing but the meat and I've also heard and have refreezed meat with no problem... and now with the fridge I would have serious issues with whom ever you bought it from
Markbb at 12:51PM on 02/10/09
Frozen meals keep for about a week in the fridge with no problems.
annabanannas at 1:36PM on 02/10/09
We had our freezer give out around the holidays and it was a true disaster read about it here:
http://www.izzyeats.com/2008/12/bloody-holidays-literally-and.html
Bloody meat everywhere. Not much was salvageable. Most of the items in your freezer will not take well to refreezing..start offering it to friends now or else it will go to waste.
izzy's mama at 2:27PM on 02/10/09
It's hard to say for sure what's going to happen without knowing exactly what types, cuts and sizes of meat you have, but re-freezing thawed meat will, at the very least, result in loss of quality. Moisture gets lost upon thawing, and if re-frozen, will affect texture. Moisture can also gather on the surface of meat when thawed, and, if frozen, can cause freezer burn. If it's been thawed long enough to harbor bacteria, then re-frozen...yikes.
Now's the time you can make stocks, stews, chilis, then portion out and freeze! If you have a slow cooker, put that to use. Borrow your neighbor's. Invite friends over for, as you said, a Viking feast!
There's nothing like a good outage to help me clean out my freezers (thank you Rita and Ike!).
hungryinhouston at 2:30PM on 02/10/09
Refreezing doesn't mean you're going to become ill from the food, but you will lose some quality. If you can keep the food from thawing completely, that's your best hope. If it got to room temp, cook it NOW or throw it away.
If you can keep it cold, refreeze, but keep in mind that it's not going to be as good. If it was me, I'd use the meats for stews or soups, or I'd grind it and make meatballs or meatloaf or something like that.
dbcurrie at 2:59PM on 02/10/09
This happened to us years ago right after moving our old fridge into our new house. It was full and I came home from work one day to find that the fridge had gone sneakers up. I was panicked!! A nice way to meet your neighbors is to knock on doors and ask if they have any freezer space for frozen foods. We were saved and met a lot of nice people in the process!!
lamora at 12:28AM on 02/11/09